| Show X 1 of the Press in Danger r Both Sides of the Great Cause now Pending before I the Supreme Court presented to our Readers the Government lei In the Panama libel case of States The New York argued as before the ime Court on October less 30 days The Governments' now to the larger A newspaper is actually d within the City of New York outside of Federal s of that paper are in the ar course of its into Point and there Ar-contained in the papers are and an indictment fair upon ce is does the fact the actual printing was not done a the confines of West Point de-the power of the Federal Gov-ent under this act of 1898 to pun lie offense of The definite libel in the New York Penal Is substantially the same as the ary one at common parate and Distinct Government's in is Under the well-under-doctrine in respect of every passing of the containing the libel from one n to is a separate and t West Point is a dis-I t under the exclusive jurisdiction and offenses committed I J cannot be punished by the New J law at and can only be pun-N of by an act of Congress ph directly provides for the or indirectly by adopting the p Offenses committed at Point are offenses not against 5 State of New but against Ignited and how they shall Punished it a matter for Congress Congress In other j Inspect of libel West Point stands in the same attitude as 5 of and it is not J the power of Congress to I Se for the punishment of libel Wed at West but it is the f Congress to do If That Is A if this is it clearly fol p. as the World points that Taft will have the pleasant task prosecuting Roosevelt The ex-president slandered Judge Simeon Baldwin of the Supreme Court of a gentleman of great learning and quite generally is 70 years of for his Justice in administering the Roosevelt refused to retract the slander when Baldwin requested him to do and then repeated It with The Judge at once announced that he would proceed to sue Roosevelt for If the Government's contention is true In the Panama libel then It President Taft not Judge Baldwin of Connecticut who should prosecute Roosevelt for This in accordance with the great principle of law laid down by Roosevelt and Stimson in the Panama case against The All the newspapers printed Roosevelt's charges against Judge and these newspapers found their way Into post-offices and Federal As and Stimson insisted in the Panama this gives the Federal courts and should not be left to a private citizen to Roosevelt He should be prosecuted for libel by the governmental as Stimson contended in the Panama Roosevelt can be prosecuted a number of separate and independent As there are Federal reservations in this country and Roosevelt's charges against Judge probably found their war In-to all of the United States Government should at once begin against separate proceedings Roosevelt for Indicting him In all these The Defendant's Claim t In the Panama the the New York now under prose claims that cution by the strictures upon the conduct of public officers by any person or paper are not to be treated as treason against the and the uk ot Its tremendous powers In prosecuting such individuals Is a return to the old discredited alien and Sedition laws of If the claim or Roosevelt Is namely that while the criminal offense of which Pulitzer has been guilty Is in form a libel upon the great Injury done Is in blackening the good name of American and that It should not be left to a private citizen to sue Pulitzer for He should be prosecuted for libel by the Governmental It clearly follows that although a prosecution may take the form of an Indictment for libel upon It actually puts it within the power of the National Government to prosecute upon the Government or attacks upon the character of Government officials on account of their official we have read If anything In this country Is settled by Its It Is that the power of control-ling the press has not been National but resides with the Under What LawT This mark was based upon the sedition law of which was very unpopular and led the overthrow of the political party that enacted and tried to uphold It act was opposed by Mr Marshall and two of the ramous Federal lawyers of that Jefferson at once pointed out IU He pardoned every one who had been convicted under In a letter he we that Congress have a right to control the freedom of the we have ever asserted the right of the and their exclusive right to do They hare all of made provisions for punishing which who have time and Inclination resort to for the vindication of their In general the State laws appear to hate made the press responsible tor slander as far as Is consistent with Its fre- Referring pie Sedition Mr Buchanan of the well knew that the laws of each of the States composing this Union were They therefore left the character of the officers created under the tad of the United States to be protected by the laws of the several They were afraid to give this Government any authority over the of lest Its colossal power might be wielded against the liberty of the They have guarded It with a wholesome and commendable The popular odium which this law was not excited by Its particular but by the fact that any law upon the subject was a violation of the Congress had no power to pass any law of the good or What President Jackson The defendant's the attention of the to the fact that In President Jac son recommended that Congress should pass an act prohibiting tow transmission through the malls of Inflammatory publications tending to excite popular discontent and that the President should have the power to decide as to the character of the publications sought to be In a speech in opposition to that Calhoun would place In the hands of the general Government an Instrument more potent to control the freedom of the press than the Sedition law After reviewing at length the act of Congress passed to refund tins collected under the sedition not quoted from the report of the House Committee on the which are of opinion that the law above recited was null and passed under a mistaken exercise of No question connected with the liberty of the press ever a more universal and Intense Interest ever received so Ions continued and elaborate Investigation was ever more generally understood or so conclusively settled by the coo- 4 opinion of all Is It not strange that the has said nothing on liberty of the great case Involving the Ulan papers have avoided this subject The Independent therefore takes pleasure In presenting both sides or It Our own opinion Is that the prosecution Is wrong and is in Itself a greater upon a free government than anything that any news- paper could say about it |
